Russian attack disrupts Kyiv internet infrastructure
A Russian attack on Kyiv internet infrastructure on Sept. 23 damaged a data center housing UTELS’ core equipment; MiroHost said a data center housing its infrastructure was destroyed. UTELS and Pautina reported network outages, and Ukraine’s Digital Transformation Ministry said about 100,000 households in Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast had internet problems.
Key points
- The attack affected data-center infrastructure used by both UTELS and MiroHost, with reports describing damage to the UTELS facility and MiroHost saying its facility was destroyed.
Evidence · 2 source statements
One of Kyiv's data centres housing the core equipment of the Utels internet service provider was damaged as a result of a Russian attack on 23 September.
has been destroyed in a Russian attack
- UTELS and Pautina reported large-scale network outages; Ukraine’s Digital Transformation Ministry put the number of households experiencing internet problems at about 100,000.
Evidence · 2 source statements
Ukraine's Digital Transformation Ministry said around 100,000 households in Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast experienced internet problems following the Sept. 23 drone attack, as specialists…
- MiroHost said most of its customers used infrastructure outside Ukraine and were unaffected, but it could not give a timeframe for restoring its Ukrainian operations.
Evidence · 2 source statements
leaving the company unable to say when operations will be restored.
About 95% of MiroHost customers are based outside Ukraine and services for them are continuing as normal.
Who's involved
UTELS
Its core equipment was housed at a damaged Kyiv data center, and its network was affected.
UTELS said the outage affected a Kyiv data center containing its core equipment and warned that its equipment being without power could disrupt its network and services.
What they said · 2 source statements
Pautina
The provider reported an outage affecting its Kyiv network.
Pautina described the incident as a large-scale outage and said some subscribers could lose connectivity because one of its data centers was affected.
What they said · 2 source statements
Ukraine’s Digital Transformation Ministry
The ministry reported the scale of internet problems and the work to restore service.
The ministry said about 100,000 households in Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast experienced internet problems and that specialists were assessing damage and restoring stable service.
What they said · 1 source statement
Ukraine's Digital Transformation Ministry said around 100,000 households in Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast experienced internet problems following the Sept. 23 drone attack, as specialists…
Oleksandr Olshanskyi
He is the founder of MiroHost, whose Ukrainian infrastructure was housed at a destroyed data center.
Olshanskyi said the data center housing MiroHost’s infrastructure was destroyed and that the company could not say when operations would be restored. He said most of its customers used infrastructure outside Ukraine and were unaffected.
What they said · 3 source statements
has been destroyed in a Russian attack
leaving the company unable to say when operations will be restored.
About 95% of MiroHost customers are based outside Ukraine and services for them are continuing as normal.
Anatolii Frolenkov
He works at the 1-IX internet exchange point and commented on the wider threat to internet infrastructure.
Frolenkov described the attacks as systematic targeting since September, while saying internet access in Ukraine would not disappear completely.
What they said · 2 source statements
“This is the beginning of a phase where, since September, they have started taking it out systematically,”
The internet will not disappear completely,
What was reported
- A Russian attack on Sept. 23 damaged a Kyiv data center housing UTELS’ core equipment.
One source: Ukrainska Pravda
Evidence · 1 source statement
One of Kyiv's data centres housing the core equipment of the Utels internet service provider was damaged as a result of a Russian attack on 23 September.
- MiroHost founder Oleksandr Olshanskyi said a data center in Ukraine housing the company’s infrastructure was destroyed in the attack.
One source: dev.ua
Evidence · 1 source statement
has been destroyed in a Russian attack
- UTELS and Pautina said their Kyiv networks experienced a large-scale outage on Sept. 23.
One source: 5 Kanal
Evidence · 1 source statement
- UTELS said its equipment at the affected data center was without power and warned that service could be disrupted. Pautina said the outage affected one data center and could leave some subscribers without connectivity.
One source: RIA Novosti
Evidence · 2 source statements
- Ukraine’s Digital Transformation Ministry said around 100,000 households in Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast had internet problems after the Sept. 23 drone attack, while specialists assessed the damage and worked to restore stable service.
One source: The Kyiv Independent
Evidence · 1 source statement
Ukraine's Digital Transformation Ministry said around 100,000 households in Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast experienced internet problems following the Sept. 23 drone attack, as specialists…
- Olshanskyi said around 90–95% of MiroHost customers used infrastructure outside Ukraine and were unaffected.
One source: dev.ua
Evidence · 1 source statement
Around 90-95% of MiroHost customers use infrastructure outside Ukraine and were unaffected, he added.
How coverage differed
RIA Novosti — Focused on the providers’ outages and their potential effect on subscribers. R2 relayed other outlets and is not independent confirmation of those reports.
Ukrainian private outlets — Covered physical damage to data centers, the broader household impact, and concerns about systematic attacks on internet infrastructure. Some reports relied on the same dev.ua account.
Still unclear
- MiroHost gave no timeframe for restoring its Ukrainian operations.
- The full extent of the damage was still being assessed.
Not heard from
- Russian government or military — The attack was attributed to Russia, but no Russian official or military statement appears.
- Affected internet customers — The reports give an estimate of affected households but include no statements from customers.